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Past Speakers and Themes

Rebecca Walker
Patricia Smith
Chief Chadwick Smith
Nikki Giovanni
Jesse Jackson
Charlyane Hunter-Gault
Martin Luther King III
Nontombi Naomi Tutu
Danny Glover
William Fletcher
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter
Dr. Angela Y. Davis
Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Dr. Michael Eric Dyson
Gloria Anzaldua
Cornel West
Manning Marable
Alvin Poussaint
Julian Bond
Yolanda King
Mary Frances Berry
Jaime Escalante
Martin Luther King III

2009 Rebecca Walker, "The Legacy of Dr. King"

Rebecca Walker addressed the audience, focusing on the legacy of Dr. King and the relevance of that legacy today: how far we've come, how far we've yet to go. Walker is a best-selling author, an acclaimed speaker and teacher, as well as an award-winning visionary and activist. Because of her transformative views on race, gender, sexuality and power, Time Magazine named her one of the fifty most influential American leaders of her generation.

2009 Patricia Smith, "The Legacy of Dr. King"

The "fierce charisma" of poetry slam artist Patricia Smith captivated the audience. A four-time champion of the National Poetry Slam, she is the most successful slammer in the competition's history for individual performance. She was also a featured poet on HBO's Def Poetry Jam, and is the author of five acclaimed poetry volumes. Instrumental in making the art of spoken word a phenomenon across the country, Smith continues to enlighten others with her political conscience.

2008 Chief Chadwick Smith, "Economic Development in Rural and Indidan Communities"

Chief Smith is a descendant of the leaders of the Original Keetoowah Society who fought to keep tribal traditions and culture alive. Smith's great-grandfather was Redbird Smith, a Senator of the Cherokee Nation in 1896, a famous Cherokee traditionalist who fought the government allotment policy under which the US took over 7,000,000 acres of land from the Cherokees.

2008 Nikki Giovanni, "The Right to Dream"

Nikki Giovanni, Distinguished Professor of English at Virginia Tech, is a Black American poet, essayist and lecturer whose work influenced many throughout the Black Arts Movement of the '60s and '70s. Her poetry is renowned for promoting racial equality, and its urgency in calling Black people to realize their identities and their rights.

2007 Jesse Jackson "And Justice for $um"

Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, President and founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, is one of America's foremost political figures. Over the past thirty years he has played a pivotal role in virtually every movement for empowerment, peace, civil rights, gender equality, and economic and social justice. Rev. Jackson has been called the "conscience of the nation" and "the great unifier," challenging America to establish just and humane priorities. He is known for bringing people together on common ground across lines of race, class, gender, and belief.

2006 Charlyane Hunter-Gault "kNOw hate"

Charlyane Hunter-Gault holds a place in civil rights history as one of the first two African American students admitted to the University of Georgia. Also know for her career as an award-winning journalist, Hunter-Gault is respected for her work on television and in print. Hunter-Gault also is the author of In My Place, a memoir of her role in the Civil Rights movement.

2005 Martin Luther King III "Higher Unlearning"

President and CEO of the King Center in Atlanta, Georgia, Martin Luther King, III continues to follow in the footsteps of his late father, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King, III's dedication to promoting nonviolence action to rid the world of social, political, and economic injustice has propelled him to the forefront as one of the nation's most ardent advocates for the oppressed and the disillusioned. He was instrumental in getting Georgia legislators to change the state's flag, an offensive and divisive symbol for many Georgians. In the 1980's, King was incarcerated for protesting against injustice in South Africa, and for supporting the freedom of Nelson Mandela. Throughout the 1990's, he addressed the moral and political dilemmas of Haiti, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. He has spoken to the United Nation on behalf of individuals living with AIDS, and has proactively confronted racial profiling by conducting hearings that led to the passage of anti-racial profiling resolutions.

2004 Nontombi Naomi Tutu "Different & the Same"

Naomi Tutu is the daughter of South African Archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu. After the South African system of apartheid was overthrown, the South African Parliament created the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 1995. The commission, chaired by Archbishop Tutu, was formed to investigate crimes committed during the apartheid regime and to bring to justice those responsible. Naomi Tutu believes there is still much to do to eradicate the legacy of the three centuries of racial oppression. Naomi Tutu founded and was the chairperson of the Tutu Foundation which from 1985 until 1990 helped South African refugees in African countries. The Foundation gave refugees scholarships so they could learn skills that would make them self-sufficient while in exile, as well as prepare them for constructive roles in the freed South Africa.

2003 Danny Glover and William Fletcher "Free at Last?"

Acclaimed actor and human rights activist Danny Glover has been an entertainment legend for over 20 years, working as an actor, producer, and director on television, film, and theatre. Winner of over 10 entertainment industry awards, Glover's projects, such as The Color Purple and Beloved, have showcased his versatility and placed him at the forefront of the Hollywood's leading men. Glover has also been deeply involved in the global struggle for human rights. Appointed a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. Development Program, he has worked as an advocate for the people of African descent worldwide. Currently serving as an advocate for the people of TransAfrica Forum, Glover is well suited to discuss the issues facing the content of Africa and its people today. For his activist work, he has won the first annual William Kunstler Racial Justice Award, Amnesty International's Lifetime Achievement Award, and an Essence Award.

Bill Fletcher, a long-time activist and organizer, was named president of the TransAfrica Forum in January 2002. Drawing on his many years of work with labor and social justice for people of African decent around the world, Fletcher coordinates a broad network of activists and researchers in providing policy alternatives and issue analysis the in areas of economics, health care, politics, and national and global policy.

2002 Rubin "Hurricane" Carter "Racism: Understand it, Accept it, Defeat it"

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter is a human rights activist and former professional boxer who served 19 years in prison until his murder conviction was overturned for racial bias. As a child, he suffered a severe speech impediment. When other children laughed at his stuttering, he soon discovered another way of getting his message across; his fists could do all the talking. Carter's professional boxing career began in 1961, and his fast furious style made him a crowd favorite. A distinctive fighter with an awesome left hook, shaved head and baleful stare, Carter scored many early round knockouts, and earned the name "Hurricane". Today, Mr. Carter is the executive director for the Defense of the Wrongly Convicted and a member of the board of directors for the Southern Center for Human Rights (Atlanta) and the Alliance for Prison Justice (Boston).

2001 Dr. Angela Y. Davis "Racist Idaho?"

Angela Davis is known internationally for her ongoing work to combat all forms of oppression in the United States and abroad. Over the years, she has been active as a student, teacher, writer, scholar, and activist. She is a living witness to the historical struggles of the contemporary era. Davis' political activism began when she was a youngster in Birmingham, Alabama, and continued through her high school years in New York. But it was not until 1969 that she came into national attention after being removed from her teaching position in the Philosophy Department at UCLA as a result of her social activism. Today, Angel Davis is a tenured professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her articles and essays have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies, and she is the author of five books including Woman, Race, and Class; and Blues Legacies and Black Feminism: Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, Bessie Smith and Billie Holiday.

2000 Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., "Race and Class in America"

Henry Louis Gates has been described as the most notable scholar of African American studies in the country. Currently, Dr. Gates is the director and professor of the W.E.B. DuBois Institute for Afro-American Research at Harvard University. Dr. Gates is a recipient of the MacArthur Foundation genius grant and author of such seminal works as Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Man; Colored People: A memoir; and Loose Canons: Notes on Culture Wars. Dr. Gates also has narrated a BBC production titled "Wonders of the African World" and a PBS documentary.

1999 Dr. Michael Eric Dyson, "Race and Class In America"

Dr. Michael Eric Dyson is one of the nation's most renowned public intellectuals. Dyson is known for wearing many hats as a prolific author, scholar, public intellectual, ordained minister, media commentator and as a radio talk show host. He has taught at some of the nation's most prestigious universities which include Brown, Chapel Hill, Columbia and currently the University of Pennsylvania but his influence has carried far beyond the academy into prisons and bookstores, political conventions and union halls, and church sanctuaries and lecture stages around the world. Dr. Dyson is named by Essence magazine as one of the 40 most inspiring African Americans and by Ebony magazine as one of the 100 most influential black Americans.

1998 Gloria Anzaldua, "Celebrating Hand in Hand"

Gloria Anzaldua is a native of southern Texas. Despite her racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression she experienced growing up as a sixth-generation Tejana, as well as the death of her father when she was fourteen, she succeeded being the only member of her immediate family to graduate from college. She received her B.A. from Pan American University, and her M.A. from the University of Texas at Austin. Anzaldua died on May 15, 2004 only weeks upon finishing her dissertation and receiving her doctorate from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Gloria Anzaldua has made major contributions to the definition of "feminism" and has contributed to the field of cultural theory/chicana and queer theory. Many of her works challenged the status quo of the movements in which we was involved. She challenged these movements in an effort to make real change happen to the world, rather than to specific groups.

1997 Cornel West, "Embracing Humanity"

Cornell West a professor of Afro-American Studies and Religion is best known for his electrifying presentations and overtly political books that inspire all of us to critically analyze our own beliefs on race, culture, and class. Many of the ideas West champions are influenced by the writing of W.E.B. DuBois, an African America activist, philosopher and educator. These includes learning the importance of community-based action, maintaining faith during trying times and going beyond challenges to influence change. "Will we be able to talk about race in such a way we can get beyond the finger-pointing and name calling and actually be self-critical and critical of each other so we can be empowered and enabled instead of paralyzed and debilitated?" questions West. His current academic interests include problems facing urban African Americans in maintaining an ongoing dialogue between Blacks and Jews. Cornel earned his PhD from Princeton University and is the author or co-author of twelve books including Keeping the Faith: Philosophy and Race in America, and Jews and Blacks: Let the Heading Begin.

1996 Manning Marable, "Community Empowerment for the 90's and Beyond"

Political activist, social critic, educator, author and historian, Manning Marable is the Director of Columbia University's Institute for Research in African American Studies. Often described as a modern Renaissance man, Dr. Marable's scholarly writings include Beyond Black and White: Historical and Political Essays and The Crisis of Color and Democracy. He has also written over one hundred fifty scholarly articles for such journals as the Howard Law Journal and the Howard Law Journal and the Journal of Ethnic Studies. A sharp critic of all forms of discrimination and injustice, Dr. Marable's theory of "multicultural democracy" and his emphasis on building coalitions across racial boundaries has inspired thousands of Americans. A strong advocate of civil rights and democratic empowerment for the poor and minorities as it relates to building community coalitions.

1995 Alvin Poussaint, "Welcome to a World of Difference"

Alvin Poussaint is an expert on race relations in America and the dynamics of prejudice in our increasingly multicultural society. He is one of the country's top authorities in the fields of stress, interpersonal communication and family dynamics. In addition, he is a strong proponent of non-violent parenting and parenting education. Poussaint was also the Southern Field Director of the Medical Committee for human rights in Jackson, MS., providing medical care to civil rights workers and aiding the desegregation of health facilities throughout the South. Dr. Poussaint joined the Harvard Medical School in 1969 and is also the author of Why Blacks Kill Blacks and co-author of Raising Black Children. As a script consultant to a popular television programs, "The Cosby Show," "A Different World," "MTV" and "Nickelodeon." Poussaint is an advocate for more responsible network programming.

1994 Julian Bond, "Confronting Fear and Ignorance"

Since his college days, Julian Bond has been an active participant in the movements for civil rights, economic justice, and peace. Bond is an activist, writer, and speaker who faced jail for his convictions and served as a veteran of more than 20 years of service in the Georgia General Assembly.

1993 Yolanda King, "Creating a Legacy of Understanding"

The eldest child of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Yolanda King was involved with the struggle for human rights. Ms. King was a member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and the Fellowship of Reconciliation. Her presentation "The Dream is Still a Dream" focused on the teachings of Dr. King and the challenges for the 21st Century.

1992 Mary Frances Berry, " ...and Justice for All"

Mary Frances Berry is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania. She was appointed by President Carter and confirmed by the Senate as a Commissioner on the US Commission on Civil Rights. After President Reagan fired her for criticizing his civil rights policies, she sued him and won reinstatement in federal district court. In 1993, President Clinton designated her Chairperson of the Civil Rights Commission. She was reappointed to a six year term in January, 1999. She resigned from the Commission on December 7, 2004.

1991 Jaime Escalante, "Hispanic Issues in Idaho"

Jaime Escalante is a remarkable man-a high school teacher whose students, underprivileged and Hispanic, have set standards in mathematics all but unequaled in American education. His fascinating, unforgettable and inspirational story gives a vivid picture of genius in the teaching profession. The subject of the book "Escalante: The Best Teacher in America," Escalante in person is as vital, genuine and challenging as he is to his student's everyday. An immigrant from Bolivia, Escalante has become a folk hero for his success-so much so, in fact, that a movie has been made about him, "Stand and Deliver," one of 1988's most acclaimed films. In 1999 he was officially inducted into the Teachers Hall of Fame. "I'm just a math teacher," protests Escalante. "I'm just helping my students achieve their highest degree of personal development." But his persistent, challenging and highly inspiring teaching methods have made his school-plagued by poor funding, constant violence, and atrocious working conditions-the seventh ranked school in this country in calculus.